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Vegan Gluten Free Chocolate Cake - Image of a slice of vegan chocolate cake with shredded coconut on a white plate. In the background is another slice of cake and a silver fork.
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5 from 5 votes

Vegan Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

An easy, 10 ingredient vegan chocolate cake that's completely gluten-free. Perfect for birthdays and celebrations.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Cooling Time30 minutes
Total Time2 hours 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: comfort food, healthy, vegan
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Elizabeth Emery

Equipment

  • 2 x 18cm cake tins
  • electric beaters

Ingredients

  • tablespoon ground flaxseed, mixed with 4 tablespoon water and set aside for 15 minutes until gloopy
  • ¼ cup melted coconut oil
  • ¼ cup coconut nectar/maple syrup
  • 2 medium ripe bananas, peeled and mashed with your hands until smooth and lump-free
  • cups almond or coconut milk (unsweetened)
  • ¼ cup coconut sugar
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ cup cacao or cocoa powder
  • cups almond flour (or other nut flour)
  • ½ cup brown rice flour
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla essence (optional)

Frosting

  • 1 400ml can coconut milk (chill a can of high quality coconut milk in the fridge overnight. Open the can, drain the water and scoop out the hardened cream that separates from the liquid. Store this cream in the fridge until ready for use.)
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • ¼ cup (heaped) cacao or cocoa powder
  • Or use my vegan chocolate ganache instead

Toppings - Optional

  • Grated vegan chocolate
  • Chopped pistachios (optional)
  • Dried rose petals (optional)
  • Shredded Coconut (optional)

Instructions

To make the cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
  • Grease two 18cm cake tins with coconut oil and line the bases with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk the flaxseed, coconut oil and maple syrup/coconut nectar until combined.
  • Add the banana and almond milk and whisk again for several minutes until everything is fully combined.
  • Add the coconut sugar, salt, baking soda, cacao, almond flour, rice flour and vanilla (if using) and stir until mixture is combined and lump-free.
  • Divide the mixture evenly between the two cake tins.
  • Bake for approximately 45-60 minutes (until a knife comes out of the centre of each cake clean).
  • Turn the cakes out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

To make the frosting

  • Chill a large bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes.
  • Using an electric whisk, whip the hardened coconut milk in the bowl until the cream is totally lump-free and fluffy.
  • Add your maple syrup and cacao powder and continue to whip the mixture for another minute or so until you have mixed it well.
  • Spoon half of the frosting in a thick even layer on top of the first cake with a flat knife, sandwiching the second cake on top of it.
  • Spread the rest of the chocolate frosting over the top of the second cake, forming small peaks and a rough texture.
  • (If you'd prefer to decorate your cake with cream in the middle and chocolate frosting on top - as in image 2 above - simply reserve ½ cup of the coconut cream after whipping and spread this between the cakes. Then continue following the steps to create the chocolate frosting for the top of the cake.)

To decorate

  • Sprinkle the top of the cake with your desired toppings, and enjoy!

Notes

TIPS

Don't be put off by the ingredients list! - This cake isn't that complicated to make.
Use very ripe bananas - They will mash much more easily than greener ones.
You're welcome to use cocoa instead of cacao powder - Cacao has more nutrients in but it is more expensive.
Follow the instructions closely for making the coconut cream - Although very simple to make, this is probably the trickiest part of the recipe as everything needs to stay cold so it doesn't melt. Enjoy!